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Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus is a fictional location in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Description Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977-1988) The first edition Manual of the Planes by Jeff Grubb describes Mount Olympus as an astral landmark, noting that it is normally encountered by travelers from worlds that worship the Greek mythoi, but travelers from other Prime Material worlds can encounter the mountain. It is a long-standing conduit from the Outer Planes to alternate prime worlds that was created by a group of deities and worshippers in the Prime Material plane. Mount Olympus is a huge mountain that links the Greek pantheon's part of the plane of Olympus with the Prime worlds that they are strong in. It has exits on the lower layers of the planes of Gehenna, Hades, and Tarterus. The mountain is a solid and permanent conduit that weathers the waxing and waning of faiths in the Prime Material and the fortunes of gods in the outer planes. The traveler is confronted with a huge mountain wall rising from the mist of the Astral and disappearing far into the distance. The traveler can then climb the mountain to the appropriate outer plane, descend to the reachable lower planes, or explore the alternate Prime worlds that the conduits touch upon. At the true terminus, the mountain ends in a color pool similar to that of a fixed portal. The traveler can then pass into the outer plane as if moving into an alternate Prime Material or the Astral plane. Yggdrasil and Mount Olympus are the best-known of the permanent conduits that link the outer planes with the Prime and with other nonlinear outer planes.Grubb, Jeff. Manual of the Planes (TSR, 1987) The Greek pantheon gathered together into a common front to fashion Mount Olympus as a continuous conduit that reaches from the plane of Olympus through the Astral and into Hades, touching all the Prime worlds where the Greek gods are known. It is not certain that the Olympian gods forged this mountain; others claim that the Olympians are little more than inheritors and usurpers of a conduit that existed since before the titans ruled Olympus. The gods of the Greek pantheon have remained together in the same location, at the head of the mountain, for mutual benefit and defense. Zeus, the leader of the pantheon, maintains a great citadel of polished marble and gold at the highest spot of the Olympian Realm. The lair of Ares is a massive battlement near the portal to the Mount Olympus passage, mirroring that of Athena, who dwells in a passage on the far side of that portal. The plane of Hades is the foundation of Mount Olympus, which reaches the Greek pantheon in Olympus, and which reaches lower layers of the plane of Hades. The base of Mount Olympus reaches the plane of Hades in its third layer, Pluton, in the grove of Persephone, at the gates of the domain of the god Hades. The realm of the god Hades has gates and great walls surrounding the grove of Persephone, where Mount Olympus has its base and passes into the Astral. Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999) The Planescape Campaign Setting (1994) boxed set by David "Zeb" Cook describes the Mount Olympus in the booklet "A DM Guide to the Planes" as one of the paths between planes and layers. Rising from the plane of Arborea, Mount Olympus has veins that reach into the planes of Gehenna, the Gray Waste, and Carceri. These planes are reached by twisting caverns inside Olympus's stone. On its slopes, characters can climb through the Astral Plane and into a number of prime-material worlds where Zeus and the fellows of his pantheon are still worshipped. Olympus has no connections to any of the other Upper Planes, and its links to the rest of the Outer Planes are well mapped. When crossing into another plane via Mount Olympus, the traveler must find a color portal. Beneath the mountain, the right cavern must be taken, since there are many false trails and dead ends. One the slopes, the traveler must search through rocks and woods for the shimmering curtains that mark doorways to other planes.Cook, David "Zeb". Planescape Campaign Setting. (TSR, 1994) Olympus, the first layer of Arborea, takes the same name of the plane's most prominent feature, Mount Olympus. The mountain dwarfs all others in size and significance (except Mount Celestia), and it serves as an interplanar conduit to all crystal spheres where the Greek pantheon is (or has been) worshipped on the Prime Material Plane. Its caverns reach into various lower levels of the planes, like Gehenna, the Gray Waste, and Careri. Pluton, the third layer of the Gray Waste, is connected to the Upper Planes by the tunnels of Mount Olympus. The boxed set Planes of Chaos (1994) by Lester Smith and Wolfgang Baur notes in "The Book of Chaos" booklet that the Greek pantheon gathered together as a common front to fashion Mount Olympus as a continuous conduit that reaches from the realm of Olympus through the Astral Planes and into the Gray Wastes, touching on the way all the places on the Prime where the Greek gods are known. The powers of Olympus dwell in the halls on Mount Olympus, the cloud-wreathed mountain that towers above all other places in Olympus. Zeus's domain is the most magnificent of them all, a great citadel of polished marble and gold that stands at the highest spot of the Olympian realm. The lair of Ares is a massive battlement near the portal that leads down from Mount Olympus to all the spheres where the pantheon is worshipped, mirroring the hall of Athena, who dwells in a palace on the far side of that portal. Hermes lives in a den of gambling within the mountain itself.Smith, Lester, and Wolfgang Baur. Planes of Chaos. (TSR, 1994) The booklet "The Travelogue" notes that far above the clouds and cares of petitioners, a character may catch a glimpse of the powers as they send their proxies up and down the mountain to their many supplicants. Legends tell that just being closer to the mountain brings a faster answer to a worshipper's prayers. Travelers claim that just by standing on the peak, a character can see for miles in any direction. Mount Olympus is a cloud-wreathed land of plenty, its slopes strewn with abundant olive groves, its foothills echoing with bleating sheep and clear shepherd pipes, its south slope home to fertile vineyards, and everywhere the smell of orchards of oranges and apples. Its woods and defiles are filled with the laughter of satyrs, nymphs, and sylphs. The best path up Mount Olympus is its gentle southern slope, where fine springs and vineyards sprout on either side of the path. Hidden paths lead through the mountain to other planes. The spirits of stone guard these paths, for the powers are jealous of their shortcuts. The portals of Olympus are open to anyone brave enough to travel them, although some of the secret paths reveal themselves only to worshippers of the Olympian powers; others attempting to follow a worshipper on one of those hidden paths are led astray into the Gray Waste. The roads on Mount Olympus are guarded by monstrous hounds, the spirits of the mountain, and per, and the temples admit just the faithful. Each temple has a small outer shrine for offerings and sacrifices, a huge statue of the deity made of ivory, gold, silver, or precious stone. The temples and homes of the powers themselves are the site of many portals to other planes; the entrance to the power's actual home is usually well disguised. Plays are often in progress in Apollo's amphitheater, a white marble semicircle carved into the southern mountainside. References Category:Dungeons & Dragons locations